A tale of two IGCs

This spring found me in several different garden centers. Early on, I headed out to buy potting soil and containers for my container garden, as well as a hydrangea and everything that went along with it for my mom on Mother’s Day.

There were two garden centers that stuck out this spring, both of which rank among the top 100 in the U.S. I had two very different experiences at the stores, based primarily on my experience with their customer service.

At the first IGC I visited, I was looking for containers and potting soil for my veggies. When I walked in on a busy Sunday afternoon in May, there wasn’t an employee to be found, and I wandered around the store for a little while until I found the containers. The first time an employee approached me to see if I needed some help, I asked him if I could pay for the potting soil at the register and pick it up outside. He responded "yes," and that he wished everyone would do that, since he’d had to refill that potting soil display several times that day. I immediately felt uncomfortable. As I was checking out, the cashier made disparaging remarks to me about the couple that had just checked out after they left their cart in the middle of the aisle. I left the store with a sour taste in my mouth, and not much desire to return there, despite its proximity to my house.

At the second IGC, where I purchased the hydrangea and planting implements, I witnessed several examples of great customer service as I walked through the store. When one employee didn’t have the answer a customer needed about tropicals, she quickly radioed for another employee who could help. While I was being assisted back by the hydrangeas, I asked where I could find the other items I needed, the employee not only showed me where they were, he loaded the bags of product onto my cart and gave me coupons for them. When another customer approached as he was helping me, he called over an employee to help her so as not to leave me hanging or make me wait. But what stayed with me was how welcome I felt in the store, and how friendly the employees were. I’ve returned to this store several times for follow-up purchases.

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Do you know what impression your customers left the store with this spring? Do you think they would relate more to the first experience, or the second? Share your comments with me at kvarga@gie.net or drop us a line on our Facebook page.
 

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